International Day of Zero Tolerance for female genital mutilation is observed every year on February 6. This year, this significant day lies on Tuesday.

Female genital mutilation is a ritual performed on women, particularly when they are young, which involves the removal of external genitalia. A woman is deprived of personal choice, human rights, personal hygiene, and physical integrity as a result of this inhuman act. This practice is an example of extreme gender discrimination, reflecting deep-rooted inequality between sexes. It is particularly carried out in minors. The time has come to end female genital mutilation and make our societies safe place for women.

Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, in his address, said Haryana was a role model for the country; Describing Khattar’s seven principles of good governance, he said these principles are indispensable for upholding democratic values

Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar released a book titled “9 Incredible Years of Haryana Government: Emergence of a New and Vibrant Haryana” in Surajkund, Faridabad, on Saturday. Chief minister (CM) Manohar Lal Khattar was present at the book launch.

The Vice President, in his address, said Haryana was a role model for the country. Describing Khattar’s seven principles of good governance —shiksha, swasthya, suraksha, swabhiman, swavlamban, sushasan and sewa—as “satvik”, he said these principles are indispensable for upholding democratic values.

The initiative, envisioned by late Dr. Manohar Parrikar, former Chief Minister of Goa, aimed to establish a nationally significant educational institute in the state. NIT Goa commenced its operations at a temporary location within the premises of Goa Engineering College in 2010 and gradually took shape in Cuncolim, South Goa, with support from the Ministry of Education in 2023.

The Goa government allocated 113 acres of land in Cuncolim for the permanent campus in July 2017, and the foundation stone was laid in December 2018. Construction, utilizing RCC Precast 3S Technology, began in May 2019, covering 46 acres initially. The campus, costing Rs 390.83 crore, boasts a built-up area of 70750 sqm, accommodating 1,260 students.

Featuring a tutorial complex, departmental complex, seminar complex, administrative complex, hostels, health center, staff quarters, amenity center, and sports ground, the campus is equipped with various facilities. Notably, it incorporates eco-friendly elements such as a solar plant, sewage treatment plant, water-saving fixtures, efficient lighting, and solar-powered street lights. The design prioritizes natural ventilation and lighting to reduce electricity consumption.

Centre for Materials for Electronics Technology (C-MET) is an autonomous scientific society under Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Government of India. It is having three R&D laboratories located at Pune, Hyderabad & Thrissur focusing on different thrust areas on critical electronic materials. C-MET, Hyderabad lab is focusing on the development of leap frogging electronic materials and strategic materials including metals and alloys.

One of the major thrust area of C-MET, Hyderabad is to develop environmentally benign e-waste recycling technologies to promote resource efficiency and circular economy in the country. India generates around 3.2 Million Tones per year of electronic waste as reported in 2019, which contains many precious materials like Gold, Copper, Palladium, Silver, etc in addition to hazardous materials like lead, cadmium, chromium, mercury etc. which can cause irreparable health hazards to human being.

The Centre of Excellence (CoE) on E-waste Management facility is inaugurated by Shri S Krishnan, Secretary, MeitY, in the presence of Shri Jayesh Ranjan, Principal Secretary, IT E&C, GoT; Shri Rajesh Singh, JS&FA, MeitY; Dr Anil Kumar C, CE&MD, M/s Greenko; Dr Sandip Chatterjee, GC, MeitY; Shri E Magesh, DG, C-MET; Shri Ashok Kumar Khatwa, CE, CPWD. The C-MET has established (CoE) first of its kind in the country under PPP model. The CoE has developed various e-waste recycling technologies viz. spent PCB, Li Ion Battery, Permanent magnet and Si-solar cells, etc C-MET has not only developed recycling technologies but also designed and fabricated necessary processing equipment for the same.

Union Minister of State (MoS) for Electronics and IT, Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Rajeev Chandrasekhar launched the "Digital India FutureLABS" and delivered the keynote address at the 'Digital India FutureLABS Summit 2024,' focused on 'Catalyzing the Next-generation Electronics System Design through Digital India FutureLABS.'

The Summit also witnessed an announcement of 22 MoUs of C-DAC with Industry for implementation of the futureLABS. Companies like NXP Semiconductors, Tenstorrent and Qualcomm India have signed MoUs in areas like High Performance Computing space, Design & Innovation in Compute space and Indian Telecom Stack.

Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar addressed the summit that included senior leadership of major industry players, startups, young Indians and academia from the electronics manufacturing field.

The Odisha government and Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) have recently signed a MoU to establish the Biju Patnaik Special Centre for Odia Studies at JNU. With a substantial financial contribution of a one-time non-recurring corpus of Rs 10 crore from the state government, the envisioned Biju Patnaik Special Centre aims to explore the leadership, governance, and noteworthy contributions of Biju Patnaik, the visionary leader of India, the Bhoomiputra of Indonesia, and the former Chief Minister of Odisha.

The initiative intends to launch a master's programme encompassing diverse aspects of Odia Studies, enhance cultural connections with the Odisha Diaspora, and foster the appreciation of contemporary Odia literature and art.

As the world marks #WorldCancerDay, the state of Goa on Sunday announced significant strides in cancer care, promising free access to the Pertuzumab-Trastuzumab drug combination for those battling Her2 breast cancer.

Vishwajit, in a momentous declaration in a post on X, revealed Goa's commitment to revolutionizing cancer care, particularly in the realm of Her2 breast cancer treatment.

Effective immediately, Goa Medical College will offer free access to the Pertuzumab-Trastuzumab drug combination, a cutting-edge therapy known for its efficacy in battling Her2 breast cancer.

The final draft of the Uniform Civil Code was approved by the Uttarakhand Cabinet here, paving the way for its tabling in the state Assembly whose special four-day session begins here on Monday.

The Cabinet passed the UCC draft at a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami at his official residence on Sunday.

Uttarakhand is poised to make history as the first state in the country to enact the Uniform Civil Code, with only the final step of passing the proposed legislation in the upcoming assembly session remaining.

The government is set to formalize the implementation of the Uniform Civil Code during a dedicated session of the assembly slated for February 5 and 6.

Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami told to reporters, "This initiative aligns with the commitment made during his election manifesto to bring uniform civil code in the state".

Justice Pradeep Kumar Srivastava, who had been serving as an Additional Judge, has been appointed as a Permanent Judge of the Jharkhand High Court.

His Order of appointment issued by the Ministry of Law & Justice stated, "In exercise of the power conferred by clause (1) of Article 217 of the Constitution of India, the President is pleased to appoint Shri Justice Pradeep Kumar Srivastava, Additional Judge of the High Court of Jharkhand, to be a Judge of that High Court with effect from the date he assumes charge of his office."

His oath-taking ceremony took place on Friday, the 2nd day of February 2024, in the premises of the High Court of Jharkhand, Dhurwa, Ranchi. Justice Srivastava subscribed to the oath as a Judge of the High Court of Jharkhand before Justice Shree Chandrashekhar, Acting Chief Justice of the High Court of Jharkhand.

In October last year, justice Ritu Bahri was appointed as acting chief justice of the Punjab and Haryana high court. On November 2, 2023, the Supreme Court collegium recommended her appointment as the chief justice of Uttarakhand high court.

Justice Ritu Bahri was administered oath as the new chief justice of the Uttarakhand high court on Sunday by Governor Lt Gen (retd) Gurmit Singh at a ceremony held here at Raj Bhawan.

Senior government functionaries, including chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, attended the swearing-in ceremony.